Baby Bottle Organizer

ABSTRACT

A baby bottle organizer comprised of a main tray with curved open chambers, which hold any or most standard baby bottles in place. The baby bottles are slid horizontally into the chambers of the stacking trays. The organizer also has the added features of holding up to nine bottles and can be broken down into three parts to easily fit into the top rack of a standard dishwasher. The organizer allows a parent or caretaker to store the bottles fully assembled either in the cabinet or on the counter space of a kitchen.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an organizer intended specifically forbaby bottles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There are many inventions that are designed to facilitate life for newparents, ranging from improved strollers to diaper beds to bibs. As newparents quickly find out, staying organized with the various necessitiesof parenting is of prime importance when taking care of a baby or smallchild. One such necessity is always having clean, sanitized baby bottleson hand, and being able to find them quickly. A baby bottle organizer istherefore not only important, but also necessary to ensure cleanlinessand prevent loss of bottles.

There are many relevant patents already in existence, but these pertainmainly to the organization and storage of drink bottles in restaurants,hotels, catering services, etc. Relevant art includes U.S. Pat. No.3,605,435, issued to Taylor on Sep. 20, 1971. U.S. Pat. No. 3,367,747,issued to Wagner on Jul. 6, 1976 is a moisture-proof bottle tray. U.S.Pat. No. 4,928,841, issued to Arthurs on May 29, 1990, is a standardbottle tray. U.S. Pat. No. 5,184,748 issued to Apps on Feb. 9, 1993 is atray for the transport of bottles. U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,814, issued toHepp on Aug. 9, 1994 is a tray intended specifically for soda bottles.The aforementioned patents are unlike the present invention in that theyare not intended for use with baby bottles. They are also inappropriatefor storing baby bottles because baby bottles would ideally need to bestored in an individual's kitchen cabinets or counter space, and theaforementioned inventions are too large to be accommodated in a smallspace. The aforementioned patents can also not be used in thedishwasher, which is necessary to ensure that the trays areappropriately sanitized for receiving baby bottles.

Relevant art includes U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,563, issued to Snow on Mar. 2,1999; the invention is designed as a drying and storage unit for babybottles, but unlike the present invention, it holds only 6 bottles andcannot be broken down to fit inside the dishwasher. U.S. Pat. No.6,688,019, issued to Buchweitz on Feb. 10, 2004, is a baby bottle-dryerwhich only holds six to nine bottles at a time, needs to be plugged in,and is not intended for use as storage of baby bottles; furthermore,unlike the present invention, it is not dishwasher-safe. Relevant artalso includes U.S. Design Pat. 411,349, issued to Johnstone on Jun. 22,1999. This design patent is a baby bottle organizer as well, but itcannot be broken down to be used in the dishwasher. Additionally, itdoes not hold as many bottles as the present invention. Theaforementioned patent has separate drawers for the nipples and lids, andunlike the present invention, baby bottles cannot be stored withoutfully disassembling them. It has been found that most parents do notdisassemble the baby bottles when storing them, for the purposes ofconvenience.

Hence, there is a need for an invention that will facilitate theorganization of baby bottles and assure a parent they will always have abottle on hand; that will be machine-washable and made of a durablematerial; that can be stored in either a cabinet or on a countertop; andthat will prevent the baby bottles from becoming lost or dirty. Thereneeds to be a storage space for baby bottles where they can dry and alsoprevent them from tipping over. When baby bottles are empty, the weightof the nipple and lid is enough to cause the bottle to tip over.

Baby bottles also have a tendency to take up a lot of room. The parentor caretaker must be able to keep them out of reach of the child whomight like to play with them, but the parent should be able to easilyaccess them. Also, the parent or caretaker should have a way ofdetermining which baby bottles have been sanitized as to prevent thebaby from coming into contact with germs.

It is expected that none of the relevant and prior art is able toaccomplish the goals of the present invention, and in this respect thepresent invention is an improvement on previous patents as it overcomessome of the disadvantages of the aforementioned inventions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a baby bottle organizer that holds all or mostbaby bottle types. It is comprised of three trays that are stackable andis designed to fit up to 9 baby bottles. It has curved open chambersthat functionally hold the bottles in place in a horizontal fashion sothat they may easily be accessed and stored. The bottles are simply slidinto the chambers and easily pulled out when ready for use. The presentinvention is designed to fit in a cabinet space or directly on thecounter; it can also be stored in any conventional pantry area. Thetrays can be configured to sit side by side or can be stacked one on topof the other. The tray is configured to break down into three separateparts to fit easily into the top rack of a dishwasher.

Essentially, the present invention solves the problem of having to lookfor the baby bottles and its accessories when a parent or caretakerneeds said materials. As any parent knows, having the necessarymaterials on hand without having to waste time looking for them willallow the parent to feel calmer and less harried, spend more time withtheir child, and greatly facilitate the task of feeding a hungry baby. Aparent can also rest assured that the bottles, nipples and lids will bekept clean, as they simply need to be washed after use and can be safelyand easily stored in the tray. Therefore, the present invention has twoprincipal qualities that improve upon existing patents: first, theability of the present invention to be broken down for dishwasher use,which sanitizes it; and second, the ability to hold and store up to ninebaby bottles, which assures a parent that they will always have a cleanbottle, nipple and lid on hand. It has been found through informalsurveys that most parents or guardians do not take apart the bottle,nipple and lid but simply leave them together. The present inventionwould allow a parent or caretaker to store a bottle without having todisassemble it.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide for a) ababy bottle organizer that can be readily and easily manufactured; b) anorganizer that can hold all or most bottle types and prevent them frombecoming lost or dirty; c) a tray that can be broken down into threedistinct parts and easily inserted into the top rack of a standarddishwasher, thereby assuring the cleanliness of the bottles; d) anorganizer that holds up to nine bottles (three per tray), as babybottles are typically sold in packs of three. The present inventiontherefore eliminates the tendency of bottles to tip over, and reducesthe amount of space needed to store them.

The invention is described further in the detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an environmental view of the three separate trays of thepresent invention as stacked.

FIG. 2 is a frontal view of one of the trays of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a back view of the three separate trays of the presentinvention as stacked.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

As shown in FIG. 1, the present invention essentially consists of threetrays (10), (11) and (12), and chambers (20) for holding baby bottles.The first tray (10) and second tray (11) preferably measure seven cm inheight each, and the third tray (12) measures four cm in height. Thefirst tray (10) has a flat resting surface (sits flush with thecountertop, cabinet or pantry shelving) while the second (11) and third(12) trays have feet (5) to insert into grooves (25) on the first tray(10) and second tray (11). In this fashion, the first, second and thirdtrays (10, 11, 12) can fit securely together; they can also fit intostandard cabinets as well as hold all baby bottle types. The roundedchambers (20) are seven cm in diameter preferably, as to fit all bottletypes, even the widest. The present invention can also accommodate thelongest and shortest bottles on the market. There is an additional smallplastic wedge (30) which can be fitted into grooves of the chamber (20)that will prevent the shortest bottles from being hard to reach shouldthey be pushed to the back of the chamber (20). The wedge (30) isremovable if so desired.

In FIG. 1, feet (5) support the second tray (11) and third tray (12),and allow them to interlock. Each tray (10, 11, 12) has three identicalrounded chambers (20), for holding a total of nine standard babybottles. The rounded chambers (20) are semi-circular and preferablymeasure seven centimeters in diameter. This is so that the trays (10,11, 12) can accommodate all of the baby bottles found on the market. Thebottles will be functionally held in place in the chambers (20), and thefit is neither too tight nor too loose. The baby bottles, for example,will not be able to fall out of the chambers (20) on their own, nor willthey become stuck in the chambers (20). The chambers (20) frictionallyengage the bottles to hold them on place.

Four grooves (25) found on the first tray (10) and second tray (11)allow the feet (5) of second tray (11) and third tray (12) to interlockall three trays (10, 11, 12) and stack one on top of the other. As shownin FIG. 1, the trays (10, 11, 12) are therefore interchangeable and canbe stacked. This allows the present invention to be stored in a cabinetspace or directly on the countertop of a user's kitchen.

To use the present invention, a user would set up the tray in theircabinet, pantry or on the counter space of their kitchen. The babybottles are then slid into the individual chambers (20) where they arelaid horizontally and kept in place for drying and storage. The bottlesare stored in place until ready for use. The present invention isdisassembled to be fitted into the top rack of a dishwasher. Preferably,the present invention is made of a durable plastic material that isdishwasher-safe when placed in the top rack. The entirety of theinvention can be placed in the dishwasher, assuring that the baby willnot come into contact with germs.

The three-level organizer allows parents or caretakers to be able todistinguish which bottles have been sanitized and which ones are drying.For example, the parent may place the clean sanitized bottles on thetopmost third tray (12) and use those first when needed. Perhaps theymay place the bottles that need to dry in the first tray (10) and secondtray (11).

Having illustrated the present invention, it should be understood thatvarious adjustments and versions might be implemented without venturingaway from the essence of the present invention. The present invention isnot limited to the embodiments described above, and should beinterpreted as any and all embodiments within the scope of the followingclaims.

1. A baby bottle organizer for holding bottles, comprising: a firsttray; a second tray in communication with said first tray; a third trayin communication with said second tray.
 2. The baby bottle organizer ofclaim 1 wherein said first tray, said second tray and said third trayare configured to receive baby bottles of all widths and heights.
 3. Thebaby bottle organizer of claim 1 wherein said first tray, said secondtray and said third tray are configured to receive between one and ninebaby bottles.
 4. The baby bottle organizer of claim 3 wherein said firsttray, said second tray and said third tray comprise nine chambersconfigured to receive said baby bottles.
 5. The baby bottle organizer ofclaim 4 wherein said chambers are configured to receive said babybottles in a horizontal alignment.
 6. The baby bottle organizer of claim5 wherein said chambers are of a diameter that will frictionally engagethe baby bottles without impeding removal by user from said chambers. 7.The baby bottle organizer of claim 1 wherein said first tray, saidsecond tray and said third tray are configured to be unstacked.
 8. Thebaby bottle organizer of claim 7 wherein said first tray, said secondtray and said third tray are configured to be fitted in a dishwasher. 9.The baby bottle organizer of claim 1 wherein said first tray and saidsecond tray have grooves on the top edge of the lateral walls.
 10. Thebaby bottle organizer of claim 1 wherein said second tray and said thirdtray have feet on the bottom edge of lateral walls.
 11. The baby bottleorganizer of claim 9 wherein said first tray, said second tray and saidthird tray are configured to be stacked.
 12. The baby bottle organizerof claim 10 wherein said first tray, said second tray and said thirdtray are configured to be stacked.
 13. The baby bottle organizer ofclaim 11 that is configured to fit in a standard kitchen cabinet space.14. The baby bottle organizer of claim 11 that is configured to fit on astandard kitchen counter space.
 15. The baby bottle organizer of claim11 that is configured to fit in a standard kitchen pantry space.
 16. Ababy bottle organizer for holding bottles, comprising: a first tray; asecond tray interlocking with first tray; a third tray interlocking withsecond tray; wherein said first tray, said second tray and said thirdtray each have three identical semi-circular chambers frictionallyengaging the baby bottles.
 17. The baby bottle organizer of claim 16wherein each of said three identical chambers is constructed of astructurally resilient material.
 18. The baby bottle organizer of claim16 wherein each of said three identical chambers is of an identicaldiameter.